How Community Health Workers Support Food Access: A National Survey

A new national survey, How Community Health Workers Support Food Access, from Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry and the National Association of Community Health Workers (NACHW), puts numbers behind what many already know: Community Health Workers (CHWs) are essential to connecting families with food. The survey captured experiences from 231 CHWs and 50 employers across 45 states.

 

Key findings include:

What CHWs Do

1. Help families navigate public benefits: 80% assist with SNAP, 57% with WIC, 34% with Summer EBT
2. Go beyond referrals, filling out applications (75.5%), explaining instructions (70.1%), and translating documents (32.9%)
3. Connect clients to emergency food while applications are pending (86%)

Key Challenges:

Complex application processes and client fears about accessing public benefits

What CHWs Need

1. More training: 87% feel confident with SNAP, but 82% want deeper support, especially around recent policy changes like HR1
2. Dedicated time in their workload (cited by 64%) and plain-language multilingual guides
3. Equitable wages and greater organizational recognition of their role

 

CHWs are trusted, community-rooted navigators uniquely positioned to lead local solutions to hunger, with the right resources and support.

 

 

Read the full report.